Computerized systems have made a significant contribution towards the advancement of modern society and are utilized in a number of applications to achieve advantageous results. Navigation-assisted travel is one such example that has benefited from the utilization of computerized systems.
Computerized navigation systems are now available that enable a traveler to generate a customized route to a specified destination. Popular applications of computerized navigations systems include Internet web sites which use map routing software to generate and display driving instructions from one starting location to a destination location. Typically, the traveler enters the desired starting location (e.g., an address or intersection of streets) and the desired destination location into an input terminal and the map routing software determines the most efficient route between the two locations based on various criteria, typically distance. The map routing software is often further configurable to adjust for emphases (or avoidance) of certain route characteristics such as freeways, speed, traffic, etc. However, these internet web sites customarily provide only simple step-by-step directions accompanied by scant additional knowledge—typically the distance traveled on each segment of the route—that may be insufficient or confusing to travelers new to the route or area.
Another application of a computerized navigation system incorporates a position determining system, such as a navigation system with a Global Positioning Satellite (“GPS”) receiver, to allow a traveler to track his location in real-time. Such navigation systems include functionality to generate travel directions based on either the position of the GPS receiver or some other specified starting location to a specified destination. These directions are subsequently adjusted or updated in real time based on the derived position of the GPS receiver. However, these navigation systems typically do not provide any additional information along the generated route.
Generally, a navigation system provides the traveler with specific segmented (i.e. step-by-step) driving instructions, such as which street and direction to turn, and how far to proceed along each segment. Presently available enhancements to computerized navigation systems are capable of conveying additional information which a driver may use to improve the navigation process. Such enhancements have included the ability to generate a graphical map of the region, report traffic congestion or accidents, define custom landmarks, and provide photographs or information about pre-set or user-defined landmarks along the route(s) determined by the navigation system between the starting and destination locations. However, a route generated by navigation systems which provide these enhancements may include so much information as to become unwieldy, confusing to the user, or inefficient to display. Furthermore, generated routes with the aforementioned enhancements may still lack the ability to provide other clearly observable indicia to make the route more easily navigable for the traveler.